Variable-text searches
You can use the keywords LIKE and MATCHES for variable-text queries that are based on substring searches of fields. Include the keyword NOT to indicate the opposite condition.
The keyword LIKE complies with the ISO/ANSI standard for SQL, whereas MATCHES is the HCL Informix® extension.
Variable-text search strings can include the wildcard
symbols that are listed with the keywords LIKE or MATCHES in the following
table.
| Keyword | Symbol | Explanation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| LIKE | % | Evaluates to zero or more characters | |
| LIKE | _ | Evaluates to a single character | |
| LIKE | \ | Escapes special significance of next character | |
| MATCHES | * | Evaluates to zero or more characters | |
| MATCHES | ? | Evaluates to a single character (except null) | |
| MATCHES | [ ] | Evaluates to a single character or range of values | |
| MATCHES | \ | Escapes special significance of next character | |
You cannot test BLOB, CLOB, TEXT, or BYTE columns with the LIKE or MATCHES operators.